I don’t think 2 sets of grow lights are going to cut it. I am having to resist the urge to buy another set. I can’t take the Seattle rain any longer. I want to start gardening now! Do you hear me Mother Nature? Now. Now. Now.
My goodness. Another day another downpour.
At least the tomatoes are coming along nicely under the grow lights. But I have one concern. I have noticed a few of the leaves have yellow patches on them. Why is this? Am I keeping the grow lights to close to the plants, or do I need to give them a little boost of miracle grow? Is there a grow light hotline I can call? If someone knows the answer please let me know. But don’t tell me to go buy some hippie product like fish emulsion or blah blah root. I am a hard-core compost and Miracle Grow girl. No weirdo remedies here. Unless of course we are talking about slugs. Then I will salt the bejezzus out of them to insure a good crop.
Is it weird to want to kiss a cabbage plant? Oh my word they are cute! I think they love me. The HH’s stinky Brussels Sprouts are coming along nicely as well. What’s up with the Irish and their love for all things cabbage anyway?
Ahh sweet peppers. I know I’ll need a few of these for a batch of zucchini relish, but I’ve already resigned to the fact The Girl Who Thinks She’s A Bird & Monkey Boy are going to eat all of the sweet peppers. Back in the old days when I would buy bags of sweet peppers from Costco, they would be consumed in less than 24 hours. Sweet peppers are like candy to my kids. I bet if the kids had to choose they would pick sweet peppers over M&Ms any day of the week.
Now on to the herbs & flowers:
I have high hopes for my basil plants this year. Very. High. Hopes. I would like to be able to grow enough basil so I can stash away tubs and tubs of pesto to enjoy next winter to use in pasta dishes and panini sandwiches. I’m not exactly sure how much I will need to grow but I’m thinking 2 more trays {72 starts in a tray} should do the trick. I plan on starting more here in just a few weeks once I’m able to move the tomatoes and peppers out to the greenhouse.
Cilantro is another herb I’m not sure of how much I will need to grow. I’m primarily growing it so I have plenty on hand when it comes time to can salsa. This lovely seed is taking its own sweet time.
The Coleus seeds were so tiny I was afraid they wouldn’t even sprout. Obviously I was wrong. The seeds took off like gangbusters.
The Old Fashioned Vining Petunia starts are looking great as well. It looks like I have tomorrows garden project all lines up. Thinning seedlings.
Peace Out Girl Scouts…
I’m off to go play in the dirt! mud!
♥ Mavis
Talking Dirt: The Dirt Diva’s Down-to-Earth Guide to Organic Gardening
Desi says
How thin do you thin your seedlings? I just don’t want to kill any but know I have to in order to have better plants.
Mavis says
I’m ruthless. I pluck them out like an eyebrow. If you want I can do a post on it to show you. Let me know. 🙂
Desi says
That could be great and also gruesome, hehe!
LFSE says
In my experience yellow leaves mean that either the plants are being too heavily watered or they’re nitrogen deficient. F— e——- would help if the problem is nitrogen related…. but i’m certainly not going to suggest you buy it 🙂
You berry gutters are fantastic, i can’t wait to see how they do (and then possibly be a great big copy cat and do it myself!).
Mavis says
Thank you. I think maybe I over watered them. 🙂
Sarah says
I tried seeds for the first time this year but I don’t have any grow lights, so this Seattle weather is not leading to a successful crop. I’m on the verge of giving up and just buying seedlings next month.
Mavis says
Sarah what did you plant? This is the first year I have NOT planted my tomatoes in trays and lined them up on the windowsill. My tomatoes always came out fine though.
Kate H. says
I have never had luck starting in those tiny starter pot/bags. A friend of mine said that if you start them in little pots with seed starter mix that you will need to feed them much sooner. She suggested transplanting the little seedling in a bigger pot when the first true leaves show up (planting it pretty deep.) Then, assuming you have a large enough pot, you can plant it kind of low in the pot and add dirt as the tomato gets bigger – keep burying it a little as it grows. I hope I am explaining okay. She said that once it has a group of true leaves it is even okay to bury the original “starter” leaves. I put mine in bigger pots to start and have been adding soil as they grew. I am using Miracle Gro moisture control in the big bags from Costco and have had great luck so far. Best wishes!
Mavis says
Yep, that’s the plan. I think in another week or so I’ll be able to re-pot. 🙂
Mo says
Once your cilantro takes off – you should have plenty. Same as basil – the more you pick some , it will keep making more. Also, plant it where it can reseed itself – mine will come back up in the fall and spring by itself now and I don’t usually need to plant any from seed anymore.
Mavis says
Good to know Mo. Thank you.